I am under the weather, so I passed on my Sunday post. Good think I had these fun book reviews for just this occasion.
I picked up Stiletto Safari on an Amazon free day and after I read it, I found she had another book, Stiletto Sunset on Kindle Unlimited, so I had to grab that one too. These covers are so fun and I thought the stories inside would be too.
I loved this fabulous romantic adventure with laughs, tears, and all the feel goods I look for and more because we are in the wilds of Africa with some fantastic Sex in the City type characters that quickly drew me into Kate Metz’s debut novel and left me wanting to read Book II, Stiletto Sunset.
This Sex in the City friendship keeps the girls going no matter what continent they are on. These BFFS are at each other’s side through laughter and tears in the fun romp around the world, with a special girl, Gabi, and a wild life and ecological taste that made me grab this after reading Stiletto Safari, Book I in the series.
I got lost in To Kill A Mockingbird by Harper Lee, so I had to check out Go Set A Watchman. Go Set A Watchman didn’t hit me as hard as To Kill A Mockingbird, but I loved learning what happened to Jean Louis Finch, since she was the star of the show.
She returns home, after living in New York City, seeing Maycomb, Alabama in a new light. Sure, she has gotten older, but she has been away from the small town life. She had left behind her brother, father, and Henry, who patiently waited for her to return, believing they would be wed.
For thus hath the Lord said unto me, Go, set a watchman, let him declare what he seeth.
Jean Louis has done a lot of growing up, but her return gives her many life lessons, showing her that things are not always as they appear to be. Her father has never tried to influence her, and he does not try now. She will become her own person.
Every man’s island, Jean Louise, every man’s watchman, is his conscience. There is no such thing as a collective conscious.
Go Set A Watchman by Harper Lee did not hit me as hard as To Kill A Mockingbird, but I found so many words of wisdom in the pages, that I found myself nodding my head and thinking, well said. I feel both books should be must reads in English and History classes, for all high schools, North, South, East, and West.
4 Stars
GOODREADS BLURB
From Harper Lee comes a landmark new novel set two decades after her beloved Pulitzer Prize-winning masterpiece, To Kill a Mockingbird. Maycomb, Alabama. Twenty-six-year-old Jean Louise Finch—”Scout”—returns home from New York City to visit her aging father, Atticus. Set against the backdrop of the civil rights tensions and political turmoil that were transforming the South, Jean Louise’s homecoming turns bittersweet when she learns disturbing truths about her close-knit family, the town and the people dearest to her. Memories from her childhood flood back, and her values and assumptions are thrown into doubt. Featuring many of the iconic characters from To Kill a Mockingbird, Go Set a Watchman perfectly captures a young woman, and a world, in a painful yet necessary transition out of the illusions of the past—a journey that can be guided only by one’s conscience. Written in the mid-1950s, Go Set a Watchman imparts a fuller, richer understanding and appreciation of Harper Lee. Here is an unforgettable novel of wisdom, humanity, passion, humor and effortless precision—a profoundly affecting work of art that is both wonderfully evocative of another era and relevant to our own times. It not only confirms the enduring brilliance of To Kill a Mockingbird, but also serves as its essential companion, adding depth, context and new meaning to an American classic.
Genre: Classics, Contemporary and Literary Fiction, Fiction, Historical Fiction
288 pages, Kindle Edition
First published July 14, 2015
ABOUT HARPER LEE
Harper Lee, known as Nelle, was born in the Alabama town of Monroeville, the youngest of four children of Amasa Coleman Lee and Frances Cunningham Finch Lee. Her father, a former newspaper editor and proprietor, was a lawyer who served on the state legislature from 1926 to 1938. As a child, Lee was a tomboy and a precocious reader, and enjoyed the friendship of her schoolmate and neighbor, the young Truman Capote.
After graduating from high school in Monroeville, Lee enrolled at the all-female Huntingdon College in Montgomery (1944-45), and then pursued a law degree at the University of Alabama (1945-50), pledging the Chi Omega sorority. While there, she wrote for several student publications and spent a year as editor of the campus humor magazine, “Ramma-Jamma”. Though she did not complete the law degree, she studied for a summer in Oxford, England, before moving to New York in 1950, where she worked as a reservation clerk with Eastern Air Lines and BOAC.
Lee continued as a reservation clerk until the late 50s, when she devoted herself to writing. She lived a frugal life, traveling between her cold-water-only apartment in New York to her family home in Alabama to care for her father.
Having written several long stories, Harper Lee located an agent in November 1956. The following month at the East 50th townhouse of her friends Michael Brown and Joy Williams Brown, she received a gift of a year’s wages with a note: “You have one year off from your job to write whatever you please. Merry Christmas.”
Within a year, she had a first draft. Working with J. B. Lippincott & Co. editor Tay Hohoff, she completed To Kill a Mockingbird in the summer of 1959. Published July 11, 1960, the novel was an immediate bestseller and won great critical acclaim, including the Pulitzer Prize for Fiction in 1961. It remains a bestseller with more than 30 million copies in print. In 1999, it was voted “Best Novel of the Century” in a poll by the Library .
Jane Blythe is one of my most favorite authors and for the first time, she ended a book with a cliffhanger. Sure, her books run in series and the characters keep making appearances, but each story is told before she moves on to the next, except for Lethal Risk. The hunkalicious, heroic men were left in a precarious position. They had been betrayed, set up, captured, tortured, and were wondering if they were going to make it out alive.
It had all begun with a survivalist that wanted to create utopia, his own version of it. I think we all know there is no such thing and his dream becomes perverted, thriving after his death. Who was running things now, they did not know. As he waited for his turn of torture he wasn’t sure he could survive, there came a bright light and a soft voice, “You buys ready to go home?”
Piper was a psychiatrist working at Prey Security. The guys were sent to her, but there was no way he was going to spill his guts to her. They had a mutual attraction going, but never acted on it. Piper had a past she kept hidden, but we all know that the past will rear its ugly head until it is dealt with. You can run, but you can’t hide.
When someone breaks into her apartment, her world changes. Not just for the bad, with a stalker out to get her, but for the good too. Prey Security rallies around her and she learns what it means to have family. They are a tight knit bunch and if you take on one of them, you take on them all.
I didn’t see the danger coming at her the way it did. It draw Piper and Arrow closer.
There are many things predictable about romantic suspense novels, but Jane Blythe manages to create a story that keeps me on my toes, throwing in a twist or a turn here or there. Of course, I do want a happy ever after and she delivers that too, all while making me crave the next book in the series. Who is the lucky guy that is going to find his happy ever after? What dangers will the couple face? Each and every one of these gorgeous, manly men put their lives on the line, so they all deserve whatever good life can offer.
4 Stars
GOODREADS BLURB
Can she accept an offer of help from a patient she’s attracted to?
Dr. Piper Hamilton is used to keeping on the fringes. She knows what it’s like to be responsible for the death of someone you love and she’d do anything to protect herself from feeling that pain again. But now she’s being stalked and a man she’s been attracted to for years is offering her not only his protection but a chance at happiness as well. Only problem is he’s a patient which makes him off limits.
Antonio “Arrow” Eden has been attracted to the pretty doctor ever since he met her, but after almost losing his life he’s decided it’s time to make his move. He’s a fixer, a healer, and he’d do anything to wipe away the sadness he sees lurking in Piper’s eyes. When he learns she’s in danger he’ll do whatever it takes to keep her safe, until he realizes he might be the biggest threat of all.
With a stalker circling closer, and demons from their pasts standing in the way, Arrow and Piper might never get a chance to have the happy ending they both desperately want.
USA Today bestselling author Jane Blythe writes action-packed romantic suspense and military romance featuring protective heroes and heroines who are survivors. One of Jane’s most popular series includes Saving SEALs, part of Susan Stoker’s OPERATION ALPHA world! Writing in that world alongside authors such as Janie Crouch and Riley Edwards has been a blast, and she looks forward to bringing more books to this genre, both within and outside of Stoker’s world. When Jane isn’t binge-reading she’s counting down to Christmas and adding to her 200+ teddy bear collection!
Cara Winter has laid the foundation for the Evolution series in Sacrifice and I am thinking, if Book II, Quest, continues in this vein, it may be a mind blower. I quickly got caught up in this apocalyptic/dysopian, debut novel.
We are in the future, 2080 to be precise. Scientific advancement may have taken place, but humanity is still the same, with all its foibles and climate change has done its damage.
“Mental Spectrum Disorder: Humans 2.0.
I love diverse characters and have been reading more and more books with them in it. Thomas Novak is autistic, but there is so much more going on than his disability. He is labeled MSD. Him and others like him are not looked at as human. They are an anomaly, only to be enslaved and suit the purpose of those that enslave them.
Thomas is the Leader of Project 587. Really, it is a surveillance software, enabling everyone to be spied on and tracked, and it is food for thought of what our future could become…or already is. After all, think of all the cameras we have now, all the software programs we use, how dependent we are on technology that has already taken away our privacy.
His begins to question his world, when a ‘friend’ and coworker commits suicide. He is the fifth that Thomas knows of and is charged with covering up, acting like they were assigned another task. THEN, he meets Eve Brighton, an empath, and his world is forever changed. He is awakened and sees the possibility of a different future. A future where he will not be watched every second of every day. Could there be freedom and love in his future?
I think we may find out in Book II, Quest and I want to know. Everything about Evolution has captured me, from the storyline to the characters, to Cara Winter’s ability to leave me wondering… what if…
We end with Thomas saying:
“Thank you, Ms Brighton. Regardless of what happens next..I am forever in your debt.”
Doesn’t that make you want to know what happens next?
I voluntarily reviewed a free copy of Evolution: Sacrifice by Cara Winter.
4 Stars
GOODREADS BLURB
The Year is 2080. London is flooding. And 23-year-old Thomas Novak feels certain he’s cursed.
Each of Thomas’ idiosyncratic quirks – even his next-level intuition with technology – are the result of Mental Spectrum Disorder (“MSD”), a genetic condition akin to Autism.
Like Thomas, MSD live and work apart from the rest of the population. MSD is the reason Thomas hasn’t seen his family in over 17 years. It’s the reason he doesn’t hear from them, doesn’t know where they are, and barely even remembers them.
And, it’s also the reason the love of his life just took his own life.
After his lover’s death, Thomas’ ability to work and carry out his duties as MSD Leader declines rapidly. Even with the “P” he’s given daily, it’s impossible to focus, impossible to think. Everything – his position, his status, his relative freedom – hangs on whether or not the project he’s been developing, Platform 587, can be released on time. But who can focus, who can work… when they’re heartbroken?
But, a chance encounter with a mysterious woman who can feel Thomas’ pain – an Empath, named Eve – changes everything.
The Evolution Series is their story; that of Thomas, and Eve, and the ongoing evolution of the planet, of human beings, and even Love, itself… in a world that will do anything and everything (even annihilate itself) to remain the same.
135 pages, Kindle Edition
Published October 15, 2021
ABOUT CARA WINTER
Cara Winter has been a writer, actress & director for over two decades. Cara has penned a number of essays on TV, theater, food, and more for such outlets as BroadwayWorld.com, TVWriter.com, and GrokNation.com. In 2021, Cara’s original TV pilot TWIRL was optioned by Bohemia Group Originals and is now in development. EVOLUTION Vol. 1: Sacrifice is her debut novel.
Protecting Hawk by Jane Blythe is Book V of the Prey, but the series is part of something so much bigger. There are many more books and authors putting their own spin on the Operation Alpha World.
About Operation Alpha
Operation Alpha is the fan fiction world for Susan Stoker’s SEAL of Protection, Delta Force Heroes, and Badge of Honor: Texas Heroes Worlds. The books all have at least one of Susan’s characters in them. Check it out at Aces Press.
I have been reading Jane Blythe’s work for a long time now and her writing style fits me well. Protecting Hawk is Book V in her Special Forces: Operation Alpha – Prey Security series. I am familiar with many of the characters from previous books and am eager to see what she puts them through in Protecting Hawk.
The guys are hunks and the women are damsels in distress, sorta. But, be careful. You push them into a corner and they can bite.
A one night stand and they are unable to forget? I can sure see why she can’t. LOL I guess if you are a guy back from a military mission, one who only does one night stands because he does not want a relationship, maybe…if he met the right one…she could be unforgettable. Is there such a thing as love at first sight?
Madeline Montgomery works as a victimologist, studying the relationship between victims and their attackers, working with police across the country.
She is on the run, because her work brought her to the attention of a serial killer, but it goes so much deeper than that. I am not going to tell you why, but it does tie into an issue that Prey Security has been dealing with.
She walks in. Eight months pregnant. Seeking help. Her life and her unborn baby’s life is on the line. She knows they are the best, so here she is.
The premise is a familiar one with romantic suspense. It’s hard to get around the push/pull, (mis or no) communication and keep the story going. After all, that is usually how it leaves her open to danger. And, real life, look how well we all communicate. LOL
After meeting Madeline, Hawk has started to reconsider his military career. Maybe it’s time to retire and accept a job at Prey Security. His family had been after him to join the firm and now he has a reason to consider it…if he goes after her. With all the skills his family possesses it would not be difficult to find her, he just has to make up his mind to do it. Before he has the chance…
It’s hard for me to imagine a scenario I don’t see coming, but Jane Blythe does manage to surprise me, when Ellen walked into the room….
Thank you, Jane, for the hours of unputdownable entertainment. Keep it coming.
I voluntarily reviewed a free copy of Protecting Hawk by Jane Blythe.
4 Stars
GOODREADS BLURB
It was only supposed to be one night.
When Madeline Montgomery finds out she’s carrying her one night stand’s baby she’s shocked, but without his name she can’t find him, and determines to raise her child alone. With a stalker upping his ante and the cops refusing to take her seriously, she runs to Prey Security for help. Stunned to find her baby’s father is a co-owner of the company, the two grow close, bonding over their son’s birth. However a threat is hovering over them, one their fledgling relationship might not survive.
Hawk Oswald doesn’t believe relationships last, yet he can’t stop obsessing over the one night stand from eight months ago. When the woman in question shows up as a client at Prey, pregnant with his child, he realizes maybe he does want a family of his own. But someone is out to get him and his siblings, and when evidence suggests Maddy might be a part of it, he’s going to have to decide whether or not he believes in the woman he’s falling in love with before its too late.
Military, Romance, Romantic Suspense, Suspense and Thriller Fiction
Kindle Edition
Published November 22, 2022
ABOUT JANE BLYTHE
USA Today bestselling author Jane Blythe writes action-packed romantic suspense and military romance featuring protective heroes and heroines who are survivors. One of Jane’s most popular series includes Saving SEALs, part of Susan Stoker’s OPERATION ALPHA world! Writing in that world alongside authors such as Janie Crouch and Riley Edwards has been a blast, and she looks forward to bringing more books to this genre, both within and outside of Stoker’s world. When Jane isn’t binge-reading she’s counting down to Christmas and adding to her 200+ teddy bear collection!
Well, my mind is officially blown. I stayed up until the wee hours of the morning two days in a row. The deeper into the book I went, the action, danger, betrayal, brutality, savagery sociopathic and psychopathic action became. At every time, they swept me off my feet, filling me with disgust, barely able to keep from gagging over the things done to John Sims.
I knew Ashley Fontainne could pen an off the chart novel, but this is my introduction to Janelle Taylor. They are both now must read authors for me.
Operation DFC – Die for Country
Operation DFC – Die for Cathy
Operation Seek and Destroy
John Sims had been a POW, so when the CIA recruited him for his first mission, to save POWs and MIAs, he never hesitated when Dave Carter asked him, “So, you’re willing to die?” His answer, “Absolutely.”
John thought the service would give him freedom from the brutality of his father, but he hadn’t anticipated the price. He knew what it was to be tortured and starved, kept prisoner for two years by the North Vietnamese, before he was rescued, the sole survivor of his unit.
I was a teenager during the Vietnam War. I remember a lot of things about it, The Draft, Agent Orange, not being allowed to win and how the service men were treated when they came home. I used to read a lot of WWII & Vietnam history and novels. I cannot imagine what it would be like, whisked from the life you have in the United States and plopped down in the jungle, in the desert.
In John’s case, he also gave up his past, his present and maybe even his future, hiding his real name, breaking all ties with family and friends. BUT, he would keep secret Cathy, his first love and the love of his life and Brad, his best friend that looks out for Cathy, Brad’s cousin, when John was away.
John has no idea what is coming, and neither did I. It was so much more than I expected, even though I knew Ashley Fontainne was capable of doing most anything to her characters. Now, I see that Janelle Taylor will too, so I will be looking for more of her work in the future.
My emotions were all over the place: angry, surprised, shocked, appalled, terrified, sad, heartbroken, horrified, furious, devastated…I could go on and on, looking up words and synonyms to describe my feelings.
I never saw half of what was coming throughout the novel. I read and read, not even thinking about when I would reach the end. I was just reading to find out what came next…UNTIL…DAMMIT…there was no more. I never even thought about it being a series. I guess you could say there is a cliffhanger, because the characters mission is not complete. Now it’s time for Lewis Roger Lee Bradford (Wolfman) from Shreveport, Louisiana to seek retribution. Black Viper, Red Dog, and Raccoon will be along for the ride and they are out for blood.
I sure do hope you Ladies are writing fast!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
I voluntarily reviewed a free copy of Operation DFC by Janelle Taylor & Ashley Fontainne.
5 Stars
AMAZON SYNOPSIS
I came to rescue my imprisoned brothers, but now I’m one.
Arriving in Thailand for my first black-op, Operation DFC, as part of an elite team ready to act on recent intel that over a thousand men and/or their remains are still behind enemy lines, Bangkok is our last stopping point before slipping into Vietnam and extracting as many American prisoners as possible.
For me, this is personal. From 1971 to 1973, I was a POW; and now, ten years later, I work for the CIA under the fake identity of John Sims, Field Expert for Crop World, an international firm run by the agency.
While in my hotel room, the unthinkable happens. Bangkok may end up being my greatest challenge as my courage, patriotism, and honor are on the line, and I find myself in the toughest physical and mental battle of my life, wondering if Operation DFC will be my first, and last, covert mission.
ABOUT JANELLE TAYLOR
The legendary Janelle Taylor was born on June 28, 1944 in Athens, GA. In 1965, she married Michael Taylor with whom she had two children, Angela Taylor-MacIntyre and Alisha Taylor Thurmond. Ms. Taylor attended the Medical College of Georgia from 1977 to 1979 and Augusta State University from 1980-1981. She withdrew from the latter after she sold her first two novels. Today, she is the author of thirty-nine novels, three novellas, and many contributions to other collections. There are thirty-nine million copies of her works in print worldwide and she has made The New York Times Bestseller List eight times. Ms. Taylor’s works have also been featured ten times on the “1 million +” bestseller’s list at Publisher’s Weekly.
Some of Ms. Taylor’s most recent books include By Candlelight, Someday Soon, Lakota Dawn, and Lakota Winds (due out in paperback in May 1999). She has also made contributions to other books including The Leukemia Society Cookbook, Christmas Rendezvous, and Summer Love. In addition, readers can see her as co-host of the QVC/TV Romance Book Club Show.
Ms. Taylor’s interests include collecting spoons, coins from around the world, ship models, dolls, and old books. She loves to fish, ride horses, play chess, target-shoot, travel (especially in her motorhome and out West), hunt for Indian relics, and take long walks with her husband. Reading, in particular books set before 1900 and current Biographies, Thrillers, Horror, or Fantasy novels, is also one of Ms. Taylor’s favorite activities. She is also extremely active with charity work and was even featured on the cover of Diabetes Forecast in February of 1998.
She lives in the country on seventy-nine acres of woods and pasture with a lake and a catfish pond. She writes her novels in a Spanish cottage which overlooks a five-acre lake, a working water mill, gazebo, and covered bridge.
Award-winning and International bestselling author Ashley Fontainne enjoys stories that immerse the reader deep into the human psyche and the monsters lurking within each of us. She writes in numerous genres including mystery, suspense, horror, sci-fi and sometimes poetry.
Ashley lives in Arkansas with her husband and is the proud mother of one son and grateful daughter of co-author, Lillian Hansen. To learn more about her books please visit https://ashleyfontainne.net/
I won both these books and was super excited to put everything else aside and read them. I was not disappointed and would love to read more of their work
MY REVIEW
Cara Lindstom is Matt Roarke’s motivation, giving him purpose, a mission in life. What happened to her, shouldn’t happen to anyone…her entire family slaughtered and her left for dead. She was five and he was nine. It drove him to become an FBI agent. There is a mystical connection between them.
IT (evil) came and killed her family, trying to kill her too. IT follows her relentlessly, she can’t escape it, only turn to face it head on, leaving a trail of dead bodies in her wake. I agree with her need for vigilante justice. They deserve the worst. I wonder…could I hand out the same punishment?
Singh, one of the FBI agents working the case, becomes obsessed with Cara and Matt. The red string of fate draws them all to Cara.
Shadow Moon rehashes past events, but that’s okay. It has been a while since I read the last one, so a refresher is fine, but it’s new to Singh, who I know will have a big role to play. I just don’t know what it will be…yet.
Shadow Moon goes from past to present and is told from multiple points of view. I feel there is still more to the story and I want to know how it ends for Cara and Matt. Can they find peace and happiness?
My only problem is the rehashing of the past. It took up a lot of the book and sometimes I wonder, is the publisher or author trying to stretch the story out……
4 Stars
MY REVIEW
Hidden by Laura Griffin was a wonderful surprise for me. It is beautifully written and made me think of Person of Interest, a TV series. It is believable and has everything I could want in a romantic suspense novel. No jump in the sack sex, but more of an itch they try hard not to scratch. Once I began reading, I couldn’t put it down. I loved the characters and their need to go above and beyond to do the right thing, though it could cost them their lives.
Nikki had returned to her small town home in Pine Grove, PA, to run her family’s TV station, WKPG TV. She is an investigative journalist and loves the freedom she has to choose what the station runs.
Ryan is the head of the state crime lab, her high school boyfriend.
It has been twenty years since Jodi had been tried in the court of public opinion for her mother’s murder. She claimed she was innocent, but people couldn’t understand how she did not hear anything, seeing it was a very small house.
Nikki is determined to solve the mystery and find the killer. She can relate to Jodi, because her dad had been murdered and it wasn’t until decades later that the mystery was solved.
In cozies, it seems there is always a critter who has a large personality and The Wrong Side Of Murder is no exception, with Elmo having the privilege of filling that slot.
Smiles, romance, laughs and mystery. Bodies pile up and there are plenty of suspects to go around.
Lauren Carr is adept at creating mysteries with characters that can seem like your net door neighbors, critters and dialogue that keep me smiling through the crime solving.
For me, cozies are hard to rate and I find it the same for The Wrong Side Of Murder. A wonderful summer read, light on the suspense but fun to read.
You may want this in your beach bag.
I voluntarily reviewed a free copy of The Wrong Side Of Murder by Lauren Carr.
3 Stars
Join us for this tour from Oct 3 to Oct 28, 2022!
Book Details:
Book Title: The Wrong Side of Murder(A Nikki Bryant Cozy Mystery) by Lauren Carr Category: Adult Fiction (18 +) Narrated by Anita Alger Length: 7.8 hours Genre: Mystery/Cozy Mystery Publisher: Acorn Book Services Release date: July 21, 2022 Content Rating: This cozy mystery is rated G for everyone!
The Wrong Side of Murder is another wonderful cozy mystery by author Lauren Carr. It has all the elements that draw me in – an intelligent female lead, an equally smart boyfriend who partners to help her, a complicated plot where clues are slowly revealed, people who aren’t what they seem to be, comedic moments to balance the darker ones, and several quirky pets full of personality.
It’s a wonderful book to escape into at the end of the day. And get ready to read into the wee hours as, if you’re like me, you won’t be able to stop reading until the mystery is revealed. -review by Marilyn R. Wilson, Olio by Marilyn
Nikki’s an intense individual who makes the perfect investigative journalist. She wants answers yesterday and she is willing to dig in to get them. She might get it wrong at the beginning but with the help of her family and close friends, she’ll get the answers she wants and needs.– review by Blooming with Books
I won both the books and was so excited to read them, though The Secret Keepers has been patiently waiting for a long time, unfortunate that it got buried in the stack of books I want to read.
A fun and dangerous journey with Genie Lo and her friends and enemies and loves, in a young adult novel. A battle between magical creatures and demons. I enjoyed it and don’t feel I was lost by not reading the first book, though I do feel I may have gotten more involved in the characters and the outcome if I had.
I loved this horror thriller filled with shock moments that had me wondering…is it in her mind…as the secrets are slowly exposed, leaving it hard to figure out who is good, who is bad and why.
D V Berkom is a must read author for me. Just wanted to let you know, if you would like to get to know her and have Kindle Unlimited, you can grab it HERE, or you can grab Book I, A Killing Truth, HERE.
Leine Basso is a badass. She used to be an assassin and now works for SHEN– Stop Human Enslavement Now – an anti trafficking network, rescuing those who are unable to save themselves. I wondered how D V Berkom would come up with something new for Leine. Trouble seems to follow her wherever she goes. She is a master at rescuing herself, but, this time…I’m not so sure she can do it solo. Not and bring down those who have conspired against her. She has been betrayed…in a very big way.
Leine is missing. Betrayal. A secret organization.
I never imagined the roots of the problem coming for Leine. D V Berkom did come up with a way to keep me enthralled, flipping pages, wondering how in the hell Leine would get out of this mess.
From the opening pages, D V Berkom had me hooked. I felt a kinship to Valentina.
I quit taking notes early on, because I was afraid of spoiling things for you. I wanted to tell you so much, but I will stick to the basics. The danger and suspense is at a high level. Valentina is not aware of those who conspire against her, using her for their own ends. Can Leine Basso save her when the shit hits the fan?
I was bummed at the loss of a man who helped her. Leave it up to D V Berkom to get my emotions riled up. She’s not afraid to kill off a character. Sometimes a character may seem bad and I wonder, can they be redeemed? Others, their greed rules their life. They will stop at nothing to get what they want. Never enough power. Never enough money.
The Leine Basso books can stand alone, but I highly recommend beginning at the beginning, with A Killing Truth, to follow Leine Basso’s life as she morphs into so much more than an assassin, yet those skills will be life saving. I wonder where D V Berkom can go from here. Will Leine always have to fight? Will she ever find a life of love, romance, and safety?
I voluntarily reviewed a free copy of Fatal Objective by D V Berkom.
4 Stars
GOODREADS BLURB
A missing assassin. An unlikely betrayal. A secret cabal, sowing chaos.
Leine Basso’s missing.
She’s not answering her calls. Or texts. Lou and Santa fear she’s been compromised. According to her operational contact, she’s fine, just busy. When she finally responds it doesn’t sound like her.
The two men who know her best aren’t buying it. Something isn’t right.
Leine Basso’s missing.
And Lou and Santa are going to find out why.
ABOUT D V BERKOM
DV Berkom is a slave to the voices in her head. As the author of two popular thriller series (Leine Basso and Kate Jones), her love of creating resilient, kick-*ss female characters stems from a lifelong addiction to reading spy novels, mysteries, and thrillers, and longing to find the female equivalent within those pages.
Raised in the Midwest, she received her BA in political science from the University of Minnesota and promptly moved to Mexico to live on a sailboat. Many, many cross-country moves (and several years) later, she now lives just outside of Seattle, Washington with the love of her life, Mark, an ex-chef-turned contractor, and writes every chance she gets.
For more information, please visit her website at www.dvberkom.com.
I loved this fabulous romantic adventure with laughs, tears, and all the feel goods I look for and more because we are in the wilds of Africa with some fantastic Sex in the City type characters that quickly drew me into Kate Metz’s debut novel and left me wanting to read Book II, Stiletto Sunset.
4 Stars
This Sex in the City friendship keeps the girls going no matter what continent they are on. These BFFS are at each other’s side through laughter and tears in the fun romp around the world, with a special girl, Gabi, and a wild life and ecological taste that made me grab this after reading Stiletto Safari, Book I in the series.
